Opportunities of consequential and attributional modelling in life cycle assessment of wastewater and sludge management
Journal article, 2019

Despite general agreement on the importance of adjusting each life cycle assessment (LCA) to its goal, the methodological choices in previously published LCAs on wastewater and sludge management systems are surprisingly similar, even when the information sought in the studies most likely differ. We argue that the potential of LCA may not currently be fully utilised, partly due to particular methodological challenges arising in both attributional and consequential LCAs for this type of systems. By developing the theory for handling of allocation problems in attributional LCAs, and by elaborating on the different possible foreseeable consequences in consequential LCA, we aim to facilitate both attributional and consequential LCAs, and to show the importance of such choices for a specific wastewater and sludge management system.
We introduce and apply a distinction between physically and legally joint processes as basis for the allocation of resource use and emissions in attributional LCA, and suggest that, when the joint process is not driven by commercial interests, allocation factors could be identified and quantified through stakeholder priorities. In consequential LCAs, the substitution depends on the subjective view on what consequences are foreseeable, for example based on short- or long-term considerations. All of these modelling aspects can, as our case study illustrates, affect the LCA results.

Sewage treatment

Change-oriented LCA

Allocation problem

Accounting LCA

Multifunctional process

Author

Sara Heimersson

Chalmers, Technology Management and Economics, Environmental Systems Analysis

Magdalena Svanström

Chalmers, Technology Management and Economics, Environmental Systems Analysis

Tomas Ekvall

IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute

Chalmers, Technology Management and Economics, Environmental Systems Analysis

Journal of Cleaner Production

0959-6526 (ISSN)

Vol. 222 242-251

Improved life cycle assessment modelling of fertilizers - the case of sewage sludge

Formas (942-2015-1116), 2016-01-01 -- 2019-12-31.

Driving Forces

Sustainable development

Subject Categories

Water Engineering

Environmental Analysis and Construction Information Technology

Environmental Sciences

DOI

10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.02.248

More information

Latest update

9/16/2022